The invention relates to warheads for anti-tank missles of the type featuring at least a shaped charge.
Warheads featuring shaped charges are well known, and exert their effect upon the armor plating of an armored vehicle essentially in the direction of the warhead axis or in the direction of the trajectory tangent. Correspondingly, the development of armor plating for armored vehicles has led to the use of inclined plates for protection of the interior of the armored vehicles because it has become known that the available path in the armor increases according to the plate angle and, additionally, there appears to be an improved protection against kinetic energy rounds due to the expectation of ricochet increasing with the inclination, and in the case of the hydrodynamic penetration of a shaped charged jet, the transient phase of the penetration or emergence of the jet is extended, thereby adversely affecting the penetration capability.
Furthermore, it has been determined that still further protection is achieved by a distribution of the plate thickness between a number of plates with intervals or spaces between each of the plates because the above-mentioned transient penetration phase appears again with each plate.
Recent considerations with respect to the modification of the plate material as well as the so-called active armor arrangements utilized the described angle effect. As a result, it appears that, although real armor platings with improved protective effect are not yet in military usage, the prior shaped charge arrangements have lost their significance. This effect would also appear to be true, not only for shaped charge projectiles, but also for hypervelocity rounds. The consequence of this is that the improved protective effect described above must be coped with by an increase in the size of the caliber, according to prior art concepts, whereby the weapon becomes heavier.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to create warheads for anti-tank missles which will produce a sufficient internal effect in complex armor platings with a minimum of mass.
According to preferred embodiments according to the present invention, the above-noted object is achieved by utilization of at least one shaped charge which has its longitudinal axis shifted angularly downward in its stabilized in flight attitude with respect to the axis of the warhead, and accordingly, the trajectory tangent.
By so orienting the shaped charge, the jet of the shaped charge is able to impact the armor plating essentially perpendicular with respect thereto, the path is reduced to a minimum, and the transient phases of penetration are extensively avoided.
If a determination is made of the solid angle of the perpendicular to the actual armor plating of the combat vehicle for all directions of attack, then the purpose of achieving an approximately perpendicular impact of the jet upon the armor plating is achieved by adjusting the angle of the shaped charge, according to a preferred arrangement, to about 35 degrees with respect to the trajectory tangent so that this angle represents an optimum because the arrangement of the inclinations of the armor plating levels of various types of combat vehicles cannot be predicted.
These and further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which show, for purposes of illustration only, several embodiments in accordance with the present invention.